


Tricked into it

by sam04



Category: Merlin (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Jealousy, M/M, Snob!Pretentious!Arthur, Swearing, insults as flirting, insults as foreplay, waiter!merlin
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-03-17
Updated: 2016-03-17
Packaged: 2018-05-27 07:25:34
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,582
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6275143
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sam04/pseuds/sam04
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Merlin finally gets a job at his favourite fish'n'chip shop and everything would be wonderful - except for the blonde prat that comes in on his first day of work and seems to be unavoidable ever since.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Tricked into it

**Author's Note:**

  * For [MelG_98](https://archiveofourown.org/users/MelG_98/gifts).



> Finally got around to write another fic - at the order of my best friend, so M, I hope you're happy now ;)

**Tricked into it**

 

_Prompt: Merlin has a simple job, like being a waiter, and meets Arthur, an entitled snob._

 

 

It was a day that made you wish you’d never left the bed. It was raining cats and dogs and Merlin was late. Not just a bit but completely, utterly late. He couldn’t even blame the traffic because the fish and chips shop in which he managed to finally, finally got a job as a waiter was just opposite of his flat. He somehow managed to completely oversleep and now he was nearly half an hour late for his first shift. Dammit.

‚You’re late,’ Was all Gaius said to him but combined with his eyebrow, it was more than enough for Merlin to feel like shit.

‚I’m sorry,’ he panted and shook his head to dry it at least a bit. A towel flew against the back of his head and a grinning Elena stook her head out of the tiny kitchen behind the bar.

‚Come on, dry your head and help me prepare the food!,’ she said cheerful and, after another questioning look to Gaius, he followed her into the kitchen. The fish’n’chips shop, _Albions finest_ , was actually nothing more than a two-roomed building with cracking wallpaper and with a permament fish stench in the air but Merlin had fallen in love with it the first time he had visited London and he was absolutely ecstatic to have landed a job here. Even though his job as a waiter included helping Elena in the kitchen since there were exactly six people running the tiny shop for Gaius who was the owner. There were Gwen and Lance, a lovely couple who could also cook one of the best Currys Merlin had ever had the fortune to eat. Then there were Elena and Gwaine who danced around each other for years if you could believe Percy, a wall of a man who managed the bar. And now Merlin was one of them too.

 

Three hours later he was exhausted from all the prepping and scrubbing the plates clean. Albions finest was quite popular and the steady stream of guest made sure that Merlin had almost no time for a break. Just a few minutes before he could finally claim his well-deserved break, the bell chimed again and one of the most gorgeous woman he had ever seen entered the little shop followed by a complaining prat of a man who looked like a greek god.

,You’re staring,’ muttered Percy to him and shook him out of his trance. Merlin blushed.

‚No, I’m not,’ he mumbled and tried to look busy.

,That’s Morgana Pendragon. She’s one of our regulars,’ Percy explained and nodded towards the woman. Merlin tried to look at her unobstruvisely but his gaze unvoluntarily went to the blonde man who went on complaining about anything he saw in the shop in a very loud voice. Merlin decided then and there that he didn’t like him, no matter how handsome he was.

 

,Welcome to _Albions finest_. Can I bring you something to drink?,’ he asked with his most professional voice when he went around the bar to greet the guests and tried to ignore how the blonde prat looked him condecendingly up and down.

‚I don’t think I want to drink anything you serve,’ the Blonde decided finally and the woman narrowed her eyes.

‚Arthur! That’s my favourite shop you are insulting here!’ She hissed at him and threw an apologetic smile at Merlin. ‚I’m sorry, just ignore my prat of a brother. Are you new here? I’ve never seen you before,’ she asked kindly. Merlin smiled a little. He couldn’t see how the two of them were in any way related since they seemed to be the exact opposite of each other but Morgana seemed nice enough.

‚Yeah, it’s my first day. So...’ He started but the blonde prat interrupted him immediately.

,Really? And you couldn’t find a better way to spend your day than in a tiny greasy kitchen with a fish stench?’ He asked incredulously.

‚I don’t think that’s any of your business!’ Merlin spluttered. How dare he! ‚I guess you think I should be some entitled prat like you, flouncing around like I own the world!’ He snapped then turned around and fled through the kitchen in the small alley behind the shop.

He slid down the wall and put his head in his hands. The first day of his job in his favourite shop and now he would definitely get sacked. Did it have to be a regular he insulted? He didn’t know what it was but the blonde prat just got under his skin like no one else did before. It didn’t help that he was bloody beautiful. He was so busy despairing that he didn’t even hear the door opening behind him.

,Merlin?’ Gaius asked and Merlin jumped to his feet.

‚I’m sorry, I don’t know why I said that, he was just so-’ he babbled on but Gaius stopped him with a hand on his shoulder.

,It’s okay, my boy. He apologized for his behaviour and they are gone now. You take your break now and then you can come back out, alright?’ He said kindly and observed Merlin who nodded numbly.

Before Gaius went back inside, Merlin asked again, just to be sure he heard correctly ‚He really apologized?’ Gaius smiled and nodded. ‚Wow.’ Merlin muttered and slid down the wall once again.

 

After that day, something like a pattern established itself over the following weeks. Every few days, the blonde prat – whose name was Arthur, as Merlin learned on one of those occasions – came in, usually with a girl in his tow, and complained loudly about everything. The food, the drinks, Merlins uniform, his ears, his hair. Never about the other waiters though and with time, the complaints about the food and the drinks were getting fewer and fewer until all Merlin heard were complaints about himself.

,Your hair looks like a bird nest today, Merlin’, Arthur said when he once again had come for lunch with his current girlfriend Sophia who giggled at everything he said. And yours looks as soft as always, Merlin wants to say but bites his tongue against the unwanted comment. Somewhere along the way the banter feels more like flirting than insults and Merlin feels himself missing the prat when more than three days go by without Arthur coming by for lunch or to pick up dinner for him and a random girlfriend. Surprisingly he doesn’t feel very jealous over the wide spread of women Arthur brings hin. He never pays attention to them and Merlin always feels Arthurs eyes on him when he is preparing the drinks on the bar so there is no reason for jealousy.

Until that day.

 

The day started off like everyone else. He went to the shop for his shift, tolerated the teasing he got from Gwaine, teased him right back about Elena and treated a few customers. Arthur came in with a new girl around 12 and Merlin didn’t notice anything different until he came to their table.

The girl wasn’t a mindless chick like all those before. She and Arthur seemed to be in an intelligent conversation for once and he actually had to interrupt them to take their order. Arthur didn’t say anything to him besides a curt nod and then all of his attention was back on the girl. Merlin was dumbfounded.

Never, never before had Arthur ignored him like that. He didn’t even know how he managed the short way back to the kitchen. Hurt flew through him in hot flashes and he struggled to breathe against the jealousy that followed. So waht, all the flirting they did the last months meant nothing? No.

Merlin put himself together and withouth the ready order – he didn’t even remember what they had ordered – he went back outside until he stood in front of their table. With bitterness he noticed that Arthurs hand was on top of the girls hand and he wanted nothing more than to rip his hand away and yell ‚He’s mine, you stupid cow!’ He took Arthur by his collar and dragged him from his chair.

‚Merlin!’ He spluttered indignantly. ‚What do you think you are doing?!’

‚This!’ Merlin said angrily and put his lips on Arthur. As far as kisses go this wasn’t one of the best that have been but Merlin didn’t care. ‚You’re mine, you realise that, yes? She can’t have you. You can’t have him’ he said to the girl who looked bemused at the two of them.

‚Merlin...’ Belatedly Merlin looked at Arthur.

‚Eh... You’re mine... If you want to?’ He offered and smiled sheepishly. Arthur shook his head.

‚You do take you time, don’t you, idiot? Do you realise how much I had to do for you to notice me?’ He said exasperatedly. Merlins eyes widened. 

,You mean that... You...’ He fluttered his hands between the girl and Arthur. ‚It was all a trick, wasn’t it?’ He asked and put his hands on his eyes.

,Yeah’ Arthur admitted easily. Merlin punched him on the arm.

‚Couldn’t you just aske me out like a normal person?’ He asked annoyed and Arthur grinned.

‚Where would be the fun in that?’ He asked and dragged him closer for a much softer kiss.

‚Clotpole’ Merlin muttered when Arthur released him.

,Your clotpole’ Arthur corrected and Merlin had to smile because it was true.


End file.
